This time last year was the renowned Beast from the East, which saw most of the UK, including the south of England and the midlands, hit by below freezing temperatures and heavy snowfall, bringing with it the kind of weather we hadn’t seen for decades.

The ocean currents that help warm the Atlantic coasts of Europe and North America have significantly slowed since the 1800s and are at their weakest in 1600 years, according to new research my colleagues and I have conducted.